Month: July 2013

It has finally happened. The fashion industry has taken a big leap forward while making the idea of customized shirts and t-shirts a big hit. Funky and cool, professional and trendy t-shirt designs have now gained mammoth popularity. Tees are no more just the mere attires; rather stand as the best way of representing a message, silhouetting an idea and highlighting your attitude.

Whether it is Christmas, election time, Halloween, rock concert or a walk for anti drug campaign the t-shirts remain as the best form of individual expression. This growing trend of tee shirt fashion has introduced the concept of t-shirt printing and custom design.

Today, the incredible range of customized t-shirts thus stands as the popular fashion statement amongst children, teens, and adults. That’s right; ranging from the plain t-shirt design to the more ornate ones, from the elaborate and trendy fun t-shirts to the professional t shirt design — customized t shirts have now taken the world by storm while making bold style statement in various designs, hues, styles, and patterns. Doesn’t really matter whether you want to express your personal views on a particular subject or wish to reflect your attitude amidst colors , design and style; It hardly matters whether you want to stand behind a cause. Now it can all be done with the customized tees.

That’s right, screen printing is one of the most widely used methods for custom t-shirt printing and compared to other printing methods it is much faster, easier and the printing method also guarantees better quality.

Round or square, geometrical or floral, basic or intricate — well you can actually choose almost any design and pattern under the sun to customize your t-shirts. Would you be interested to add a bit of royal touch to your style? Customize your tees with puff ink, shimmer, and glitter to make them eye catching.

Screen printed t-shirts are also affordable and further adds to its growing popularity. For the uninitiated, these can also be washed easily with hands and even in the washing machine and you need not to worry about the horror of ink running down!

To be honest, the sheer idea of custom t-shirt printing stands as the insignia of your creativity. Let’s accept the fact; the shopping malls are kind of crammed with pink and red displays bearing traditional holiday gifts to help you select the perfect gift for your loved one. If you think that these are failing to capture the essence of your feelings, then it is the best time to add wings to your creativity and gift your loved one something special, something which they would hold close to their heart, something which will remind them of your message and ideas. Cheap custom shirts, which are now available have not only carried the fashion world to the next plane but have also stood apart in proclaiming your attitude in perhaps the most stylish way.

It still feels like summer, but fall will soon be upon us so it is time to begin preparing for fall sports like Cross Country. For those unfamiliar with this popular sport, individuals or teams run an outdoor course over grass, ground, and sections can also go through wooded areas. Successful cross country runners are skilled in long-distance running along with being able to handle a variety of terrains. The “track” of a cross country course is not too treacherous, but it is comprised of a rolling path with several turns; runners will go through one or several loops, but there will be a long straight path heading towards the finish line. Loops should be approximately 1,750 to 2,000 meters.

Cross Country started to gain popularity in the 19th century and was based on an English Game called “hare and hound” or “the paper chase.” Schools began holding competitions around 1837 and by 1867, the first national championship was held. The race was open to anyone and runners had to trek along a three and half mile course through the wet and rolling Wimbledon Commons. The race was not too much of a success, apparently they started at five o’clock at night and the path wasn’t easy to follow which resulted in several runners getting lost.

The big difference between standard track and cross country is the mainly the track. While most standard tracks are uniform, cross country courses can vary from place to place which creates new challenges for runners at every competition. Runners who are on new tracks need to concentrate on keeping a steady pace and utilizing the course to best benefit the runner.

If you are leading a team of cross country runners, you need to prepare by getting the right gear. Runners usually wear cross country spikes which are very light sneakers with a rubber sole and several metal spikes in the sole at the front of the foot. Depending on the course conditions, spikes can be as long as 25 millimeters. Other apparel includes shorts and vests or singlets. Since this sport is commonly done in the fall, tights or long sleeved shirts are often used to keep warm on those colder runs.

Rush Order Tees can help you design and print training t-shirts or warm long sleeved t-shirts. Simply upload your school’s logo to our Design Studio or used our graphic library to create fun shirts just for your team.

It’s Monday again (and it will be again is seven days), so Rush Order Tees is here with your weekly round up of unique holiday t-shirts. This week we have a few fun ones like Beer Day and Happiness Happens Day, but we also have a history lesson with Ingersoll Day. Books lovers will rejoice on the aptly named Book Lovers Day, but then there’s Fresh Breath Day. I think we should celebrate that everyday, but that’s just me. Rush Order Tees can help you design your own Garage Sale and many more unique holiday t-shirts, but it’s okay with us if you just want to celebrate the big ones. As long as you get the shirts to match.

Monday, August 5 – Beer Day

What a great excuse to go out and get a few beers on a Monday! If you are a bar or pub, this is a great opportunity for a promotion. You can design shirts to sell or giveaway during Beer Day promotions. Another options is to get them early for your staff to wear and promote your Beer Day Festivities. Have a beer pong tournament or invite a brewery in to do a tasting or tap take over. Have specials on selected beers or offer half off appetizers for the evening. Lots of people are getting into home brewing, perhaps you can have a home brewing competition and give the participants Beer Day shirts. Three cheers for beers…day. (Rush Order Tees reminds you to always drink responsibility).

Here at Rush Order Tees we obviously have a ton of t-shirts. We’ve got basic tees, V-necks, organic cotton, ringer, long sleeve, and even fashion fitted. Let’s face it–we’ve got the T-shirt thing down. But we also carry a variety of other customized apparel like sweats, hoodies, hats, and baby onesies.

That’s right, we do carry customizable baby clothes and while your really little ones may grow out of those within weeks, customizable onesies are great promotional items for the growing number of “Mommy and me” classes that are available. One quick search on the internet shows a large variety of classes that can moms and tots can participate in. We found yoga classes that have baby lay beside mommy as she stretches and balances. There are also lots of music classes that get your little Beethoven interested in fun instruments. We even found a class that teaches sign language at a very young age. Studies show children are more likely to learn and attach to the arts and language skills even before they speak. Customized onesies are a great promotional gift at events, open houses or even just giving them to new clients.

So for today’s trip to the Rush Order Studio Design we decided to give the little onesie, the big spotlight.

4400 by Rabbit Skins in Heather, font is Briquet in Rose Magenta with a thin white outline

4400 by Rabbit Skins in Light blue, font is Art Brush Medium in Light Brown, graphic is in light brown

*If you are interested in designing and printing customized onesies, we recommend speaking directly to a Project Specialist. Due to the adorably cute size of the garment, we may able to create a higher quality design and layout specifically for the onesie.

It’s Monday and instead of just mourning over the loss of your weekend, maybe you should start gearing up for the big holidays. No, Target didn’t put Christmas decorations up yet, but Rush Order Tees has got your weekly round up of unique holiday tees. You need to start planning for next weeks big days like Paperback Book Day or Girlfriend Day. Here are a few ideas on how to celebrate and the tees to match.

Monday, July 28 – Lasagna Day

Has someone told Garfield? Is Garfield still a thing? It a little confusing why we would want to celebrate a hot dish that needs to bake for several hours in the middle of the summer, but it is lasagna so maybe we can forgive it. Who doesn’t love that meaty, cheesy delicious dish that makes you always want seconds despite all logic to what our stomach size is. Restaurants can run lasagna-themed promotions, even if you aren’t an Italian Restaurant, try to put a new twist on the dish. If you are looking for a fun fundraiser, try to put on a lasagna eating contest. Maybe throw a party and have your friends and family bring their versions and have a taste test. Whatever way you celebrate, don’t forget the shirts.

Tuesday, July 29 – Paperback Book Day

Toss your Kindles aside for the day and celebrate paperback books. Those cheap little literary nuggets that you can easily carry and you never had to worry about sun glare (iPad—I’m talking to you). If they got wet, no problem you just dried it out. You could trade them, sell them, and use them to level out wobbly tables. If you are one of those people that turn their nose up at technology and are constantly saying, “I just like the feel of books” or “I love the smell of books” here is your holiday. So get some shirts and proclaim your love of the paperback.

Wednesday, July 31 – Uncommon Instrument Awareness Day

Pianos and guitars are so overrated. If you happen to play a didgeridoo or a hurdy gurdy, this is your day! Celebrate your instrument’s uniqueness along with giving yourself a pat on the back for choosing your uncommon instrument of choice. If you are a coffee house or café, hold an “Uncommon Instrument Open Mic.” School bands can hold a concert that turns the spotlight on some of the lesser known band members (instruments, not students).

Thursday, August 1 – Girlfriend Day

I know what you’re thinking, isn’t that Valentine’s Day? Nope, technically that’s the day for the couple to celebrate together. This is the day that is just for pampering your girlfriend. Be nice and do something sweet and romantic or maybe celebrate with something only she likes to do since it is her day. Don’t worry, Boyfriend’s Day should be a thing, someday.

Friday, August 2 – Ice Cream Sandwich Day

Just as we had our fill of National Ice Cream month in June, we have to go back to the freezer. This is the day we celebrate that tasty treat that combines chocolate and vanilla like no other. Ice cream shops, this is a no-brainer. Hold ice cream sandwich promotions like BOGO or make special flavors for the day. If you are a café or restaurant, give your best spin on an ice cream sandwich and serve it for the day.

Saturday, August 3 – Watermelon Day

Finally a healthy fruit! After all the ice cream and hot dog days (not together thankfully), we are thrilled to bite into a freaking fruit. Celebrating this cool and refreshing summer favorite would be a great promotion for food joints. Create a watermelon juice or smoothie for a daily special. Hold a watermelon decorating contest for charity. Just don’t go all Gallagher and smash them, that is just wasteful.

Sunday, August 5 – Coast Guard Day

From the tip of Maine to the last of the Florida Keys in the east and along a bunch of other stuff in the west (we’re good at tees not geography), the Coast Guard protects the waters of the United States. They bravely watch the oceans, bays, and rivers to protect us and make sure bad guys don’t sneak onto our land. Honor these heroes by wearing a Coast Guard Day shirt.

All shirts were made with Rush Order Tees’ Design Studio. Fonts were all provided by the Design Studio. Some graphics were imported.

We all have them, piles and drawers filled with well-loved and not forgotten t-shirts. Maybe one is the concert shirt you got the first time you saw your favorite musician. Another shirt is that tee you got on you first vacation with your girlfriend, who is now your wife. Maybe it is a just a few high school or college shirts that remind you of your glory days. You can’t throw them out or donate them. You need to keep them, but after years of wear and tear, you just can’t wear them again. Rush Order Tees has the solution; we’ve done a little research and have found several ways to keep your favorite tees close.

T-shirts are used as souvenirs and mementos so we have a tenancy to hold onto them for years and years. Concert shirts pile up because you need a reminder of that tour back in ’83. Sports shirts pile up because they represent team spirit and loyalty. Either way, a lot of us have a pile of old t-shirts that we just can’t get the nerve to throw out. A great idea that will give new life to your t-shirt collection is to turn that pile of old cotton into a t-shirt quilt. You don’t need to be a top-notch sewer, but you do need some skills. Thanks to YouTube there are tons of tutorials and instructional videos. The end product is comfy and will let you literally wrap yourself in memories.

Don’t have the time for a full quilt—how about a fluffy pillow? Take your favorite old t-shirt and with some fluff and a few snips and stitches and you have a cool decorative pillow. This video shows you how to make one without even having to sew anything. Try using old college or high school shirts is a rec room or man cave. Old concert shirts will make funky couch pillows. Turn an old vacation souvenir into a great gift.

Maybe you aren’t sentimentally attached to your t-shirts or you just have a bunch of worn out tees. You may never where that airline credit card free shirt, but Sparky would love to chew away at that credit rating. With only two shirts and a pair of scissors, you can snip and braid the shirts together to create a fun toy for your four-legged friend. Got a lot of old t-shirts? Got friends with dogs? Is it a major holiday? Think you found a way to get rid of all your old shirts? Yup.

T-shirt Scarf

Scarfs are pretty popular these days. Old t-shirts…not so much. Take one of your old shirts and reincarnate it as a scarf. There are quite a few examples on Pinterest, but this one looks pretty simple and the end product is a light and loopy accessory. Take an old tie-dye number or “stress” a plain colored shirt with a few bleach splashes to give your scarf a bo-ho flair.

We found this tutorial and while we aren’t attempting this anytime soon, the end result is pretty cool looking. This small rug was made with about 44 children’s t-shirts and other clothing which makes this the most sustainable project we’ve listed. Since this is basically crocheting with strips of t-shirts you can use a variety of colors and clothing sizes. It looks cool, but um…good luck with that.

It is simply everywhere. Find it at gift stores that specialize in pretty stationary and magnets that feature 50’s style women who make snarky comments about drinking. For the past decade, the slogan “Keep Calm and Carry on” has had a surprising resurgence of popularity; it appears on everything from mugs to cocktail napkins. In meme form, it has been parodied and posted almost as much as Grumpy Cat (and sometimes they’re even found together). While many people may know this is a British thang, did you know it one of three posters?

Near the beginning of World War II, the British Ministry of Information produced three posters to boost morale during wartime. Despite 2.5 million copies being produced, the poster was never displayed publicly. Basically, the first two slogans bombed (uh, bad pun). So what were these bad slogans?

Okay, the second one is a little wordy, but basically the Ministry tried to make the posters and slogans like a direct message from the king, but the phrases were actually created by civil servants. These “calls to action” were seen as patronizing and the public did not take to them at all. Most British citizens never even saw them.

Flash forward to the year 2000. A bookstore owner finds an original “Keep Calm” poster and hangs it in his store, suddenly there is an audience. Soon enough, the bookstore owner is reproducing copies and the design’s popularity grew. Ironically, a company tried to trademark the slogan in the European Union, but not England—hilarity and lawsuits ensued.

Today the design is seen in many forms and perhaps it is even more popular that some of the American propaganda phrases like “I want you” or “We can do it.” After a few Google searches we decided to hit the Rush Order Tees’ Design Studio and create a few of our own “Keep Calm and Carry on” tees.

All of these shirts were made with Rush Order Tees’ Design Studio. Most graphics were imported and the font used was Helvetica.

As you can see, the versatility of the phrase and simplicity of the design does make it simple to reproduce and parody. You can create your own “Keep Calm” shirts pretty easily for an event, like a wedding, sporting event, or just for fun. And if you have trouble thinking of your own “Keep Calm” variation there is even a website to help you with that.

At Rush Order Tees we see tons of company logos. Back in the 90’s working for corporate was way uncool, it was selling out. Then we all learned we had to pay our bill and student loans can’t be paid with artistic integrity. But there are some benefits with working with big companies, we make them happy with snazzy t-shirts and they make us happy by coming back and buying more snazzy t-shirts.

As the movies fans we are here at Rush Order Tees (but then again who isn’t?), we decided to take a look at some of our favorite fictional companies and headed off to the Design Studio to see what we would create if let’s say Skynet (from Terminator) suddenly became a client.

Here’s our designs for our favorite fictional company t-shirts:

Die Hard, 1988 – Nakatomi Trading Corp.

This first film launched a major franchise that is still going today. Trouble always find John McClane, or is it the other way around? His first round with surviving the impossible took place at the fictional Nakatomi Plaza, home of Nakatomi Trading Corp. This shirt takes the Nakatomi logo as a two-color screen printing design on our long-sleeved t-shirt in charcoal.

Sirius Cybernetic Corp. is the company responsible for most of the futuristic gadgetry throughout Douglas Adams’ world. Most of the time the products don’t always work as best as they should, we guess they’re aren’t as high-quality as a Rush Order Tee. This corporate logo was simple Google image search and then uploaded into our Design Studio. The shirt is our retro-looking ringer tee and the logo can easily be made with five colors or black and white to keep costs down.

Terminator, 1984 – Skynet

Before James Cameron directed two of the biggest grossing films in history, he did this “little” film with a “little” known body builder, and a “little” known special effects guy. The result was an iconic sci-fi film that launched a couple of careers and burned the phrase, “I’ll be back” into all of our brains. Can you even think about those word’s without Arnold’s accent? Audiences everywhere were introduced to a high-tech company called Skynet. We took a bit of a business approach with our Skynet shirt, this is one of classic polo shirts in black with a white trim. We think this shirt calls for some custom embroidering for the red Skynet logo.

Blade Runner, 1982 – Tyrell Corporation

It took a few years before Blade Runner was deemed a sci-fi classic. The combination of Ridley Scott’s directing and a script based on a Philip K. Dick novel wasn’t as popular the first time around, but by the fourth of fifth version of he film to released in theaters, DVD, blue-ray, etc., it had a whole new audience. The film’s fictitious company, the Tyrell Corporation developed the human-like Replicants (more human than human as Rob Zombie reminds us). We took a pretty simple approach to our Tyrell Corp. shirt. This image is a three-color screen print placed on our classic V-Neck.

These shirts would be great giveaways or could be sold at a screening of these classic films. With Rush Order Tees’ Design Studio you can upload your own graphics or design to help create a pretty swell fictional company t-shirt. Trying to think of others? Here is a list straight from Forbes.com of their “Top 25 Fictional Companies.” Take a look at their list and see what you can create with our Design Studio.

As summer continues on we still have plenty to celebrate besides hot weather and hot dogs, well actually this week we will be celebrating the hot dog and the chili dog. There are lots of fun holiday you may have not known about so as always, we encourage your to set you own tradition, order a bunch of Rush Order Tees and have a good time celebrating with your unique custom holidays t-shirts.

Monday, July 22nd – Hammock Day

What would improve a lazy, yet lovely summer day? Why a hammock of course! Those backyard beds that slowly sway in a cool breeze are the perfect accessory to summer. Who wouldn’t want to take a nap after some yard work or maybe no yard work. Hammock Day celebrations should include a backyard barbeque, a hammock or two, and some “Happy Hammock Day” shirts from Rush Order Tees.

Tuesday, July 25th – Hot Dog Day

This one is pretty simple, get some buds and some dogs, then have some fun. If you live in or near the city you can do a hot dog cart crawl or just stop in a few hot dog shops. Invite your friends over for a cook out and grill up a variety of dogs (cheese-filled anyone?). Maybe you can even sponsor a hot dog eating contest. All these events and gatherings are missing one thing, a tee. So here’s our official Rush Order Tee for Hot Dog day.

Wednesday, July 24th – Drive-Thru Day

You know, Junk Food Day and Drive-Thru day are just a little too close together. Do you smell a conspiracy or are those just french fries? If you are up for the caloric challenge, find a few drive thru joints and celebrate this day. We are honored to present a shirt that commemorates the day we decided we could no longer be bothered with parking and getting out of our cars to get hamburgers, chicken nuggets, and tacos.

Wait, who’s hungry?

Thursday, July 25th Thread the Needle Day or Chili Dog Day

Chili Dog Day. We warned you, but we didn’t make you a shirt. Come on, there is only so much hot dog artwork out there. Thread the Needle Day celebrates the art of sewing, and thanks to sites like Etsy and Pinterest crafts are pretty darn popular. Lots of people are picking up knitting needles to make infinity scarfs or crocheting the likeness of that grumpy cat that’s all over the internet. Sewing has also become popular, which is a good thing because we need someone to sew us a t-shirt quilt. Now, where ever will we find the tees?

Friday, July 26th – Talk in an Elevator Day

More like break the awkwardness day! Have you ever been in an elevator with other people and you’ve been hesitant to hold a conversation because the enclosed space ensures everyone hears your business? And then the other people go ahead and hold a conversation. This is the day you all get along, sing a few songs, but mainly this is the day that you talk in an elevator.

Saturday, July 27th – Walk on Stilts Day

We want to make sure you budget well in advance for this day. You will need stilts and those can go up to $259 (get it, go up?). Then you’re going to need to make some Rush Order Tees. Maybe you can hold a walk on stilts-a-thon for charity or you can hold a parade, maybe other people use these things and getting a bunch of people on stilts together is always an amazing sight.

Sunday, July 28th– Parents’ Day

Considering this is a day that celebrates the two people who put us each here, maybe we should be less snarky about Parent’s Day? Nah, didn’t they each just get the own holiday? Now for a third month in a row we have take them out to lunch? Maybe we should, after all they may have done some important stuff for us. In their honor, make some t-shirts and throw a charity event that supports families’ that need a little extra support. Make Ma and Pa proud.

All of these designs were made with Rush Order Tees’ Design Studio and most were made with our own font and graphic selection. So, with a little imagination and an off-beat holiday you can create a pretty sweet Rush Order Tees.

In a galaxy long ago and far away, known as the internet, there are tons of “geek” or “nerd” shirts and some of them are really quite clever. There are only a few pop culture icons parodied more than the Star Wars movies. Whether you are on the dark side or down with the rebels, you know the story all too well. While most fans will cherish the original three films, there is a Darth Maul that pops up every so often ( no love for Jar Jar). Here are a few sweet Star Wars t-shirts we found across the galaxy, then we got inspired and took to the Rush Order Tees’ Design Studio and made one of our own. Rush Order Tees can help you design the perfect tee for your next viewing party, screening, or maybe even a Star Wars themed birthday party.

“Never go Solo, Take a Wookie,” JunkFoodclothing.com, $35.00

“My Radio,” Welovefin.com, $25.00

“Bad Guys are More Fun,” Totally-awesome-tees.com, $23.94

“Nar Wars,” Designed by Austin Frankel, Threadless.com, $19.50

“Oh Mys,” Made with by submitting art to Rush Order Tees’ Design Studio. $18.00 each for a batch of 15.

There are plenty more at these sites, but with your imagination and your favorite character you can create a Star Wars shirt that is perfectly unique.